you don't bring me flowers anymore
by Densetsu-no-Maguro
Summary: Takayasu's Arteritis. She doesn't have much longer to live. MarixKana
1. Prologue

**_you don't bring me flowers anymore_**

_a Kanako Miyamae fanfiction._

* * *

><p>Prologue<p>

* * *

><p>White walls.<p>

She's stuck in a white box, in a white bed, yet the world she sees is black.

The girl's younger sister was beside her, keeping watch over her sleeping form. A pile of books were beside the bed, snugged right against the IV. The heart monitor beeped in a uniform pace, and the girl breathed slowly, in and out, as she slept.

In all her life, Miki Miyamae had never thought that her elder sister, Kanako would end up in a hospital. It did come as a shock when the blue-haired high school student dropped to the floor unconscious in the house one night while grabbing some snacks for her and her sisters. Kanako fell to the living room floor like a ragdoll at approximately 8:34 pm on a Tuesday during the summer term break, as documented by Miki.

The rest flurried by like a blurred dream.

An ambulance blaring its sirens. A rolling gurney holding her sister's body on top, entering the ambulance. Miki, and her elder sister rushing inside the ambulance, along with the paramedics. The hospital at night. Shouts of emergencies. The ICU.

Was it the ICU or the ER? Miki herself forgot.

The doctor, or the cardiologist, more like, spoke of terms that left no hope for the family, nor Kanako herself. _Takayasu's Arteritis. Aortic arch syndrome_. The 'pulse-less' disease.' At that point, Kanako didn't bother to break into hives when her doctor (who happened to be male) examined her pulse, to which he shakes his head and says that there was no pulse to be felt. And even when he did a second try, there was a very weak response.

Kanako refused to wake up or even hear anything of the sort anymore, yet she also had the fear of dying in her sleep.

Miki looked at the clock, noting that it was already 5 pm.

The summer term break would end soon, and Kanako would be expected to go back to Ame no Kisaki to resume her studies as usual. Kanako was determined to return back to school, not wanting to accept the fact that she was facing a terminal illness that would possibly claim her life. No one wanted to accept it at this point, and the only rock that was supporting Kanako was Miki. Their elder sister was trying her best, but Kanako didn't like to be reminded of the fact that she has something that can't be cured by modern or traditional medicine.

She will die.

Nothing looked happy anymore. Everything looked bleak.

* * *

><p>"Nee-chan?"<p>

"Hm, Miki?"

"...D-Do you want to go to school today?" Miki asked timidly.

Kanako looked over at her sister, still lying on the bed with a blank expression on her face. Having a private ward definitely had its perks; it keeps people from seeing how broken Kanako was from the inside. She only let Miki and her doctor enter nowadays, refusing to see anyone else.

Her sister had beautiful blue eyes. Brown hair that was wavy and long, unlike Kanako's short blue hair. A charming young girl, overall. Kanako had always favored Miki, and she felt more at ease whenever she spoke to her, sister to sister. That day was the start of school, and the end of the holidays.

Even Miki brought Kanako's uniform to be hanged by the window, just in case she decides to go.

"...Do you think I want to go to school today, Miki?" Kanako asked with a gentle smile and a soft voice.

Miki mulled over it.

"Mm...I think you do. I know that you want to go out, nee-chan."

"...Do you think that I'll be okay, Miki?" the blue-haired patient asked again.

"The doctor said that you'll have to restrict your movements. No over-the-top actions, no running, no physical education activities."

"Then that'll be alright."

It didn't convince Miki enough. Ame no Kisaki is a boarding school, not an ordinary school. Her elder sister would need constant supervision, constant supplies of medicine and close monitoring. And Ame no Kisaki, being a school, was only equipped with an infirmary with cold medicines and first-aid kits.

"I...don't think you should go, nee-chan," Miki said nervously.

The room was silent, but Kanako's slender fingers gripped the sheets. Her knuckles were white. Her face was hardened, trying her best not to unleash a waterfall of suppressed frustrated tears. Miki was concerned for her, Kanako knew, but it was like telling her to stay and die in the hospital. She knew that she wasn't well, but people kept reminding her that she wasn't well, that she wasn't going to be cured, that she wasn't normal like other people and that she couldn't ever return to the life that she had led before. Her face was heating up, her bottom lip quivered, the space below her eyes felt so heavy and painful since she was holding back her tears-

...She needed to go.

She couldn't stay in this white box anymore.

"...Please, Miki," was all she said. "...I need to go to school."

* * *

><p><strong>Dear Mother in heaven, these are my last moments.<strong>

* * *

><p>AN: This is an ongoing fanfic that's going to continue for quite some time!

-Densetsu-no-Maguro.


	2. Chapter 1

_Dear Mother in heaven,_

_you told me to look to God in prayer._

* * *

><p><em><strong>you don't bring me flowers anymore<strong>_

_A Kanako Miyamae fanfiction_

* * *

><p>Chapter 1<p>

* * *

><p>This was where her parents had met a long time ago.<p>

Kanako's dearest mother in heaven had studied here in Ame no Kisaki, and the blue-haired girl wondered whether she was following in her mother's footsteps, or taking an entirely different road. It was true that Kanako did come to the school to find true love just like how her parents did, yet now, when the sun appeared dark in her eyes, she had decided that Ame no Kisaki would be an escape, a rehabilitation center of sorts.

_Takayasu's Arteritis._

It sounded like a death sentence.

_The cause of Takayasu's Arteritis is unknown. It is a rare illness that occurs to young women below 30 years old. The pulse-less disease is a chronic inflammation of the large blood vessels that distribute blood from the heart, including the aorta and its main branches. The inflammation of the aorta and its branch arteries can lead to poor blood supply to tissues of the body in patients with Takayasu's Arteritis. This can cause painful, cool, or blanched extremities..._

Various students walked by Kanako, who was standing and staring at everything and nothing at the same time. It seemed so surreal; the hospital, the diagnosis, the medicines that she had in her bag, the medical certificate that was in her pocket and the fact that she was standing perfectly upright that day was surreal. It was as if she never was sick in the first place, as if she never collapsed back home or spent her days in the hospital.

Standing there at the path towards the school made it so much like a dream.

The time she walked into those gates was like something from a fairy tale. She started to walk, slowly and cautiously, her shoes making stepping noises on the bricked ground...

So far, so good.

That's right. She'll get better. She's walking so well, and she'll definitely be better soon.

So Kanako Miyamae walked, trying to envision a typical new term of her final year in Ame no Kisaki. See the beautiful angels, imagine the festivals, sleepovers with girls in lacy lingerie and pajamas...!

Step.

"Eh..."

What...did she step on?

The object that she had stepped on was a textbook, notably_ 'Fun Time Maths 2.'_

"Aha...ahahahaha..."

She dropped her Math textbook. In the midst of her reveries and her depressed thinking, she dropped her textbook right where she would step.

...Better there than staying inside of her bag.

Kanako laughed, and laughed, and laughed. Nothing had changed, after all! Nothing was any different! It was just like before; everything would be the same. Nothing would be different even when she's sick like that, and there'll always be pretty girls, Mariya and Matsurika-

...

..._Mariya and Matsurika._

She twitched, realizing full well that she'll have to spend the term with them.

But there was the bright side; everything was the same. Everything was the same, and nothing would disrupt it. She'll just have to take her medicine-she did, after all, undergo surgery that day, so it'll be okay. Kanako merely hoped that it didn't leave a scar, since the doctor did stitch it up very carefully.

Even so! The risks of having such an ugly scar would be there! And if the girl of her dreams manage to find out about her scar, she might be horribly turned off!

"Good morning, Kanako-san!"

Oh? What is that angelic sound?

It is the sound of an angel! An angel that fell from heaven above! She must acknowledge the voice, the voice that could only belong to-

"Good morni-!"

Kanako's greeting was cut short when she saw that the angel in question was, of course, not an angel at all, not even a girl, and was obviously Mariya Shidou.

Smug-faced bastard. A literal dick. A sly fellow! If Kanako flipped that skirt up for the world to see, surely the girls in Ame no Kisaki would be horribly mortified! And Kanako would be their sole comforter, and this way, she can get the harem route that she's always wanted~! A harem full of beautiful girls in a Catholic school! And all this without a walkthrough, and she'll unlock the H-scenes too...!

"...Oh god, you're the same as last term," Mariya said, obviously disgusted and disappointed.

"W-What do you mean by tha-"

Blood. Kanako tasted blood. Would you look at that, she's nosebleeding.

"He...hehuehuehue..."

"I think it can't be helped," Matsurika said, walking up to them. "Did you grow, Kanako-sama? I think you did."

"I didn't!" Kanako cried, hastily picking up her Math book. "It's only one term break! How the hell could I have grown in one term break?! That just doesn't make sense!"

Mariya shook his head. "Frankly, everything about you doesn't make sense. You're just a pain in the ass."

"That's not true! Searching for true love in a sea of beautiful angelic girls and hoping for the H-ending in this visual novel of a life is a very sensible thing~~!"

"Disgusting pig."

"U-Uwaa...!"

Mariya looked over at Matsurika, who too was quite stoically disgusted. Even so, it wasn't like they were going to put up with her forever. It's Kanako's last year, and this was her final term. After that, she would graduate from Ame no Kisaki, and she'll move on to college. Then university. Then do her part to contribute to society.

They both shuddered to even think of how _Kanako Miyamae_ would do her part to contribute to society. Rather, she'd defile it.

"So, what did you do for the term holidays?" Mariya nonchalantly asked. "I couldn't catch wind of you since I had things to do."

_I went to the hospital, had a heart operation and stayed there._

"I went to the beach with Miki~!" Kanako said, swooning. "Aah, my little sister can't be that cute~~!"

"Liar," was his deadpan response. Mariya definitely caught on.

There was only nervous laughter coming from Kanako, and she knew that she couldn't lie. Mariya Shidou, after all, caught on every single thing just like that, and that's when he's_ not_ trying. The blue-haired senior dreaded the possibility of him ever trying to make an effort to find out a very carefully hidden secret, given that he was a rich bastard with a dead grandmother whom he would crossdress for out of familial love as well as to stay in the running to inherit Ame no Kisaki and Mihashi no Mori...was indeed terrifying and intimidating on its own.

But this was one thing that Kanako absolutely couldn't tell Mariya. Or anybody.

To tell someone that you're about to die by the end of the year is completely depressing, since the one who would most likely be depressed would be the dying person themselves. To the person you're speaking to, it would be either depressing or laughable.

"C-Can't you leave me with my private life, please...?" Kanako tried a very pathetic pout.

Mariya looked less than impressed. "Ahahaha, no. Walk. You're blocking the road, fatas-"

Whispers from other passing girls cut Mariya's sentence short, notably the younger girls. He instantly waved, plastered a charming smile on his face out of nowhere and giggled girlishly, as if he was relishing in a cute joke. Murmurs of how Shidou-san and Miyamae-san get along so well reached the trio's ears, and while Mariya was relishing in the fact that his farce was going along so well, Kanako felt like digging herself a hole.

How could they fall for such trickery? Kanako has decided; she will save these girls from this awful person's tricks, one way or another!

His sudden grin to Kanako could easily be interpreted as: _'I'd like to see you try.'_

Technically, she didn't have to dig herself a hole at this stage. Funeral people would do it for her when she's dead in a coffin. It didn't take long for her to die with Takayasu's Arteritis catching up, ensnaring her in its symptoms slowly if there were no triggers.

Great.

If there were no triggers.

As Kanako pretended to listen to Mariya's insults, she remembered that she had to take her medicine at 10.

* * *

><p>Sticking her hand into her bag was a nightmare.<p>

Kanako twitched as she took out her slimy packets of medicine before proceeding to wash them in the dorm room's bathroom. Justified; the amount of medicine that she had couldn't fit in her pocket (but maybe they could fit in Sachi's), but where else could she put them in?

She really should've bought a new bag and left that..._thing_...somewhere...even if it could be found again.

Mariya and Matsurika would be back around now, but for the time being, Kanako decided to let reality sink in. Everything had to be taken in right then, right now, and Kanako had to remind herself that while her life in Ame no Kisaki was an ideal escape from reality, she still had to remember that she was chronically ill.

"Your name is Kanako Miyamae," she spoke to herself, looking at her reflection in the mirror. "You have short blue hair and blue eyes."

Okay, that's good. Keep going.

"Your height is 175 cm, your birthday is on August 31, you're a Virgo and your blood type is AB."

Carry on.

"...You hate men."

That's it. That's all.

What should she do next? She technically made a self-introduction to herself in front of the mirror. The mirror stared back, and being a reflection, it definitely couldn't answer Kanako's questions unless she came up with an answer. Kanako then opted to read the particulars of her medicine.

"Prednisone, immunosuppressant. Clopidogrel. Nifedipine..."

...She couldn't go on. She couldn't go on reading all that.

So she got some water, downed her dose and looked at herself in the mirror again. There was the reflection of the clock behind her, and she put her medicine inside her bag, noting that she had to go to class. The post-holiday orientation was done, and Kanako prepared her books as if it was a daily routine.

It was a routine. A sick routine. Kanako placed the books aside, remembering that nothing ever happens on the first day of post-holiday orientation, and that the students were free to do anything they liked.

Why did everything look so negative in her eyes lately?

"Oi, where have you been?!" Mariya bellowed, prompting Kanako to jerk from her current position and knock her head against the cabinet in shock.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow...!"

The blonde clicked his tongue, scrutinizing her as he groaned. Really, she was hopeless. There was nothing that he nor Matsurika could do to save her pitiful, perverted soul, and what's worse, he knew that something was off. Kanako was spacing out at the orientation, and she didn't look nervy or amiable.

"I know something's up. Tell me what it is," he said, bending down to her level. "Please, Kanako-san?~"

"..."

W-What...What was this beautiful image she was seeing...?

"I'll tell you~~!" Kanako jumped up, flailing her hands in the air. "I'll tell you everything, beautiful angel of mine~~~!"

"Did you grow in height?" Matsurika cut in.

Kanako froze.

"W-What...a...s-sensitive...topic...!"

Gentle giggles came from Mariya, then they evolved to full-out masculine laughs of ridicule. "Oh my god, you really are gullible, aren't you!"

"BASTARD! YOU'RE BULLYING A PITIFUL MAIDEN!"

Mariya smiled, gathering his things as he looked over at Kanako, who was rubbing her sore forehead. What a typical sight. Kanako was being uncharacteristically secretive, to which, he thought, was all the more fun. What could she possibly be doing during her term break? Knowing Kanako, it would possibly involve incredibly embarrassing things that he would just love to exploit, and he looked out of the window.

"It's still morning, huh?" he mused to himself. Kanako looked out of the window too, seeing the beautiful greenery of Ame no Kisaki in their full glory.

"...Yeah. It's a beautiful morning."

"Do you two plan on looking out of the window to admire the greenery?" Matsurika said, looking out as well. "Because I don't mind."

"It's beautiful," Kanako said softly, smiling. "Just like her."

_Just like you, Mother. Just like your beautiful soul._

_Don't worry._

_I'll pray. I'll pray every single day._

_And I'll get through this._

* * *

><p><em>Tota pulchra es, Maria,<em>  
><em>et macula originalis non est in te.<em>

_-Tota Pulchra Es_

* * *

><p>AN: It's a peaceful yet angsty chapter, and I'm glad that I wrote it as the base for 'you don't bring me flowers anymore'! Please look forward to more chapters!

-Densetsu-no-Maguro


	3. Chapter 2

_Dear Mother in heaven,_

_you told me to abide in Him._

* * *

><p><em><strong>you don't bring me flowers anymore<strong>_

_A Kanako Miyamae fanfiction_

* * *

><p>Chapter 2<p>

* * *

><p><span>8:47 pm<span>

"Ah...?"

Tonomura-sensei looked over at Kanako's medical certificate, looking a bit shocked as she reread the contents again. It was accompanied with a letter from Kanako's doctor, to which Kanako couldn't really understand due to all the medical terms that he had used. Of course, being Ame no Kisaki's infirmary nurse, Tonomura-sensei knew much, and her face was crestfallen.

"High blood pressure...it's a symptom, I see," Tonomura-sensei frowned. "No wonder you nosebleed easily."

"I-Isn't it because I'm a bit too extreme in imagining things...?" Kanako nervously laughed.

The nurse shook her head, putting the sheets of paper on her desk as she relaxed into her chair. "Not at all. Extreme imagination merely contributes to your high blood pressure. And your doctor limits your clopidogrel specifically because of your pressure."

Kanako bit her lip. So she has another thing. High blood pressure. It's like a contributing condition. Kanako might as well be a doctor's dream, or a nightmare.

"Well, Takayasu's Arteritis can't be helped. You'll have to come to the infirmary each day so that I can monitor your health. Don't get too flustered when it comes to shocking experiences, or if it can't be helped, have a friend next to you so she can help. Maybe Shidou-san-"

Tonamura-sensei's sentence was harshly interrupted by Kanako's sudden voice.

"No."

"...No?" Tonamura-sensei repeated, arching an eyebrow.

"...Don't tell Shidou-san," Kanako said, clenching her fists. "She...She doesn't deserve to know. Don't tell anybody. Please."

The nurse merely smiled.

"Are you worried about Shidou-san worrying about you, Miyamae-san?"

_Lie through your teeth, Kanako._

"Yes."

A frown crossed the older woman's face, prompting her to turn on her chair to face Kanako properly. "You're not alone, Miyamae-san. You have friends, you have the teachers and you have the Dorm Leader as well. Don't think that you can do this on your own. Accept the help that's around you."

"Please keep my condition private and confidential," was all Kanako said, no more, no less.

This wasn't getting anywhere. Tonamura-sensei knew that, and she decided to stop right there.

* * *

><p>That was what happened yesterday night, right before curfew.<p>

There were a thousand things that no one ever knew about Kanako Miyamae. Kanako even took the time to laugh to herself while walking to school from the dorms, thinking of a few things that she unintentionally deceived people about.

She knew what a rosary was.

She always knew how to operate computers well.

She did love ethics; it was her favorite subject, and she didn't intentionally switch her mindset when taking the exam.

Mornings were bleak. Her days were painful routines. At times like these, Kanako actually wished that she could share a dorm with Ryuuken-sama for further privacy and a more genuine concern from a roommate, however Ryuuken-sama had already long graduated. Age does catch up. Age waits for no one. Age serves as a grouping system, a silent indicator of relationships not yet formed and a legal indicator of consent.

Age, however, is disregarded whenever there was a terminal illness involved. Illnesses don't discriminate.

If anything else, this illness had indeed woken Kanako up from a long, meaningless dream.

Life had reminded her that it was real; it was indeed as real as it could be. High school wasn't fun. Her life wasn't fun. Kanako Miyamae reminded herself silently that she is the second child, the middle child of Professor Miyamae, and thus she has certain responsibilities. Sad as it was, she was the only child who never cried during her mother's death; when the casket was lowered and when her two sisters cried for their mother's passing, Kanako merely looked on silently, as if she completely comprehended death itself.

At times, her elder sister did notice that she was indeed more mature than the rest of the family, and to an extend, most like their late mother.

Kanako never thought of herself that way.

What made her snap out of thinking alone was the presence of quite an obnoxious soul; an attractive priest to most of her schoolmates, but a constant annoyance to her alone. Kanako had viewed Father Kanae as anything but serious, but the somber expression that he wore made her think twice. The throng of girls who usually flocked to him in the pretenses of asking him curricular questions did not follow him today, for he specifically chose this time, this intimate time to speak to Kanako herself in front of the girl's dormitory.

"...Father Kanae," Kanako said, giving him an attempt of a light smile.

"Miyamae-kun," Father Kanae bowed. Ah, the gentleman. If he kissed the back of her hand right then and there, she'd most likely scream and slap the living hell out of the poor man of God. "Do you have time today after classes? Tonamura-sensei wants to monitor your condition in the afternoons."

...Did the entire faculty of Ame no Kisaki know already?

As if Father Kanae could read her mind, or rather, since her expressive face gave away her thoughts, he held up a hand and shook his head.

"I assure you, Miyamae-kun, that only Tonamura-sensei and I know of your condition."

Kanako nodded silently. If Tonamura-sensei had trusted Father Kanae with her condition, then surely he was trustworthy enough. She remained on the steps, staring at the priest's palm as she thought on how much has changed ever since she was diagnosed. How much has her perception changed, if she could view Father Kanae seriously?

Father Kanae wasn't very well known to be serious to observant people, and even if Kanako wasn't the brightest crayon in the box, she too could catch on fairly quick. His martyr-like behavior towards pretty women (and scandalously, younger students) were actually thinly veiled somehow, so for him to actually initiate a normal conversation with someone he had deemed a troubled student certainly surprised Kanako in more ways than one. A serious, normal conversation, in which Kanako, in her stupor, noticed that the man before her looked at her as if she was his young ward, or a lady to protect.

"...I'm free," she answered. "Will...you come with me to the nurse's office?"

A ghost of a smile crossed Father Kanae's face. "Yes. But before that, we're going somewhere else."

"Where are we-"

"Ah, Kanako-san!"

The elder girl's free hand was instantly taken by another, eliciting a shameful, girlish scream from the former out of habit. The atmosphere was instantly broken and replaced with another one; the familiar zaniness that Kanako knew all too well. In a split second, despite her natural hives, Kanako wondered whether to go along with Mariya's interruption and get along with the day as usual, or to _slap_ that hand away and smartly retort that she was busy, she was in a conversation, and that the high and mighty Mariya Shidou should've noticed that, as a proper _lady_ should.

Father Kanae's response automatically made Kanako choose the first choice, much to her chagrin.

What started out as a serious conversation, a conversation that Kanako actually wanted to stay in, was changed to the dream that she was woken up from; the laughter, the ridicule, the humor of the priest wanting unattainable women, and that one of them was hilariously as male as he was. As Father Kanae and Mariya spoke pleasantly, Kanako could only keep mum, smile, and will her legs to walk away.

Far, far away.

* * *

><p>Mariya Shidou <em>did<em> notice something wrong; he wasn't stupid.

Kanako's behavioral patterns were worse for wear, or maybe they had changed for the better. Earlier, he caught her deep in conversation with Father Kanae, which was incredibly rare and utterly impossible; how could Kanako Miyamae, who had hated men with a burning passion, bear to speak with a man with much seriousness and tact? He mulled over the silent details as he looked at his unfinished work in class, the equations staring back at him as if to tell him to solve them _first_, then solve the dilemma of his roommate.

Yes, of course. Of course. Solve the coordinates first, _then_ solve the problem of Kanako Miyamae.

Bullshit.

He was well-known in the family to be a rash individual, especially if his sister, Shizu were to confirm it. But being rash in this situation would get him nowhere. Kanako was as distant as winter to summer, as autumn to spring, and it seemed that this time, it would be very hard to pry out anything from her. Did a family member pass away? Did something happen at home?

No, no. Those questions could be answered later. The million dollar question in his mind was this:

_What did Father Kanae even tell Kanako that morning?_

* * *

><p>"The sky doesn't look so good..." Kanako mused, standing beside the priest who would eventually escort her to god knows where.<p>

It wasn't easy evading Mariya; only with the help of Father Kanae did she manage to actually make a painstaking detour around the school to meet up with the teacher at the back of the school. Indeed, the sky was cloudy, but it did not perturb the anointed man of God one bit. With a small comforting smile, he looked at his concerned student and shook his head reassuringly, wanting her to feel at ease before he led her to the place where most would least expect.

"It's alright," Father Kanae said gently. "It won't rain now. It might rain after an hour, more like."

"How do you know?" Kanako asked inquisitively. "How is it that people can tell precisely when it might rain, and they end up being right?"

They walked; past the intricately trimmed hedges, past the beautiful flowers, past the greenery of the school's walkway as Father Kanae mused on her question. Tonamura-sensei did tell him that she had always been inquisitive, just like how her mother and father had been, and that it would be right to indulge her with answers to her questions. She would ask more questions as time passes by, but not all the answers would be answered whenever she wills it. Right now, right now was the start of it all, the first stone to be thrown into the waters, and from there, her choices and theirs might align, coincide, or completely go out of course altogether.

"Ah...it's something that you can tell as you get older, Miyamae-kun," he said, settling for that answer. Father Kanae took a deep breath, then observed the blue-haired student's expression at the fact that yes, Father Kanae did lead her to a cemetery.

The cemetery where only a few select people could be buried in. The school's cemetery.

"...The...cemetery?" Kanako breathed out.

Without a word, Father Kanae placed a hand over the cold metal of the gates, unlocking the lock as he pushed one door open for Kanako to enter. Hesitantly, she did, and as he closed the gate behind them, he beckoned her to follow him to see one particular grave; the most infamous grave in all of Ame no Kisaki and Mihashi no Mori. A crucifix stuck into the ground, a name engraved in stone, a body that might have been decayed or cremated prior, a woman with the power of a man.

The late Chairman Irene's grave.

"...Father Kanae, what does this-"

So it begins.

"Miyamae-kun, were you not curious as to how your mother died?" he began, treading on dangerous territory immediately.

Almost instantly, he saw her alarmed eyes widen, her arms stiff, her face contorted into a look of horror and questioning. Indeed, the mother of three girls was a precious woman to her daughters, but even more so to Kanako, the child who understood her best. Kanako whirled around as she pleadingly looked at Father Kanae, as if that gaze alone could bring out all the answers to all her questions. Didn't her mother die due to a heart attack? Wasn't her mother as sickly as she was?

"Father Kanae, what happened to my mother?" Kanako frantically asked, but he shook his head. He couldn't tell her yet, and even so, he didn't have all the answers. Speculations were in the air, arguing among each other as their two human mediums retained the suffocating tension.

"Not now, not now," Father Kanae coaxed. "...But learn this, Miyamae-kun. You see this grave? This grave that the whole school revers, this dead woman who had brought an impact on many people's lives?"

"Yes, I see it, but my mother-"

"Listen, Miyamae-kun," the man said, looking bitterly at the deceased, delivering the ultimatum. Kanako's eyes widened at the phrase; it was an impossible thing to do, only a heretic could bring themselves to do what Father Kanae had said next. But the intensity of the phrase shocked her to silence, shocked her to disbelief, and worse, made her think of things that she too couldn't comprehend.

"...You see this grave?" he repeated. "...Never, in any circumstances, pay respects to this woman."

* * *

><p><em>Hail Mary, full of grace,<em>  
><em>the Lord is with thee.<em>  
><em>Blessed art thou amongst women,<em>  
><em>and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.<em>

_-Hail Mary_

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** It's not dead! It's alive! It has a conspiracy! Keep the reviews coming, and thank you!

-Densetsu-no-Maguro.


End file.
